This invention relates to a device for separating an automotive oil filter into its components for recycling, and further relates to the removal of engine waste oil from the filter for disposal in an environmentally safe manner.
Motor vehicles require periodic, regular replacement of the engine oil and replacement of the oil filter. A used oil filter has no further use on the motor vehicle and so it must be disposed of in some manner. The practice up to now has been to simply dispose of the filter along with the other refuse generated by a service station for ultimate disposal at a municipal landfill. Increasing concern over the environment, however, has drawn attention to the disposal of oil filters in two respects--recycling the metal parts and disposing the engine waste oil.
An ordinary automotive oil filter typically has a substantially cylindrical shape. The filter comprises a thin metal casing which forms the wall and one end of the cylinder, and a relatively thick metal plate on the other end. The base plate, which provides a rigid base to the filter, has a threaded central opening for attaching the filter to the motor vehicle. Inside the filter is a filter cartridge which consists of a cloth, paper or other soft synthetic filter material supported by two thin metal end plates and a thin metal central core.
The metal parts of an automotive oil filter are a valuable, recyclable resource. However, recycling processes require metals to be separated from other materials which would interfere with the recycling process or otherwise contaminate the end product. Due to the combination of different metals used to construct the filter, the synthetic filter material, and the engine waste oil trapped inside, an oil filter is not recyclable as a unit. The components must be separated from each other to have any value as a recyclable resource.
Regarding the problem of disposing engine waste oil, when an oil filter is removed from an automobile, waste oil is difficult to remove from the filter and so it remains trapped inside the filter. Over time some of the oil may seep out through the openings of the filter, thus raising the prospect of contamination of the landfill site and the groundwater below. Concern over the environment has led to efforts directed at recovering engine waste oil after it has been used and removed from the engine or crankcase of a motor vehicle for proper disposal or recycling. Some states are mandating by statute the recovery and recycling of engine waste oil and are restricting disposal of products containing engine waste oil, including oil filters. California and Wisconsin are examples of two states which now regulate the recovery, recycling and disposal of engine waste oil. For example, Section 159.15 of the Wisconsin Statutes mandates the establishment of engine waste oil collection facilities, and mandates the development of programs regarding the need for using recycled oil to maintain oil reserves and the need to minimize disposal of waste oil and products containing waste oil in ways harmful to the environment. The statute specifically requires businesses which sell automotive engine oil, and requires businesses which service and remove engine oil from motor vehicles, to maintain an engine waste oil collection facility for temporary storage of engine waste oil.
In California the State Legislation found that almost 100 million gallons of used automotive and industrial oil are generated each year in that state alone. The Legislature further found that, despite the fact that used oil is a valuable petroleum resource that can be recycled, significant quantities of used oil are wastefully or improperly disposed of by means which pollute the environment and endanger public health. For these reasons, California has mandated that used oil shall be collected and recycled to the maximum extent possible. See California Code, Public Resources, Sections 3460-3494.